Remember the 2019 LSU Tigers? You couldn’t script it better if you tried. A perfect 15-0 run, tearing through one of the toughest schedules in college football history like it was a backyard scrimmage. Joe Burrow threw for an absurd 60 touchdowns and over 5,600 yards, Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase turned defensive backs into props, and Clyde Edwards-Helaire danced through SEC defenses. Seven wins over top-10 teams. Fourteen future NFL players. Ask anyone, and they’ll say that the squad belongs in the ‘greatest of all time’ conversation for college football. The standard? It was sitting up in the stratosphere.
But after that peak, Ed Orgeron’s next two seasons were rough. Injuries, staff turnover, and COVID chaos all mixed into a mess, and the magic of 2019 felt distant by the time LSU decided to make a change. That’s when Brian Kelly walked into Baton Rouge ready to put his stamp on the program. He’s been big on talking about “culture” since day one. Recently, he said, “Culture is standards and what’s acceptable on a day-to-day basis… And when we took it over, the bar was really low relative to what the standards were. Kind of [like] you can do what you want if you’re a really good player.”
“When we took this program over, the bar was really low relative to what the standards were.”
Coach Brian Kelly what excites him about the LSU squad he’s coaching this season, and shares his favorite New Orleans spots.
…@CoachBrianKelly @LSU @LSUfootball pic.twitter.com/BhhwTlk1ea
— WWL Radio (@WWLAMFM) August 13, 2025
Listen carefully, he said, “The bar was really low.” Can you, as a college football fan, get behind it? We’re talking about a program that, just two years before Kelly arrived, fielded one of the most disciplined and dominant teams in the history of the sport. You don’t luck your way to 15-0 in the SEC. Sure, Orgeron’s last couple of years were sloppy, but that 2019 roster lived at an insanely high standard of preparation and execution. Kelly is painting it like the bar was low, feels less like setting a vision and more like taking a swipe at the very foundation of LSU’s greatest moment. That’s a dangerous way to win over a fan base that still remembers those championship nights on Bourbon Street.
Kelly doubled down, adding, “Now what happens is others hold others accountable to those standards,” as if no such accountability existed before his arrival. Say what you will about Orgeron, the man ran competitive, high-energy practices and wasn’t afraid to call out mistakes. Former players have spoken about how he pushed them hard while keeping the locker room tight-knit, often adapting his style to motivate different personalities. You don’t get a roster full of NFL-ready talent all pulling in the same direction without discipline. Orgeron’s methods might not have looked like Kelly’s perfect culture model, but they sure got results.
Brian Kelly wants LSU to be a year-in, year-out playoff contender, and that’s fair. But calling the bar “really low” when he arrived feels like a stretch considering the Tigers had won a national title just a few seasons earlier. Yes, the program stumbled after 2019, but the culture, talent, and winning mentality was still there. His challenge now is to raise consistency and set his own standards without dismissing the very legacy he’s building on.
LSU Fans Fire Back at Brian Kelly’s Critique of Orgeron Era
Remember when we asked if you, as a college football fan, could get behind Brian Kelly’s comment about LSU’s standards being “really low” when he stepped in? Well, it turns out LSU fans aren’t having any of it. One fan said, “Love that he thought LSU standards were s—. He sure knows how to piss off fans. Especially when they don’t make the playoff again.” And honestly, can you blame them? LSU has lost all of its last four openers, and Brian Kelly is still talking smack to Clemson about being the real Death Valley.
The vibe from some in the Baton Rouge faithful is downright personal too. One fan sympathized hard and said, “I feel sorry for LSU players and fans having to deal with a phony like this as their coach…” That stings, right? Add to it the feeling that Kelly’s quick to dodge accountability. Another fan said, “So glad he’s gone from South Bend. He can never take ownership of his mistakes and makes excuses or blames everyone else but himself.” It’s that frustration bubbling up from a fanbase that remembers a different LSU, one led by a coach who might not have been perfect but knew his turf inside and out.
Moreover, fans are also suggesting that Notre Dame is in a better space after Kelly left. A fan also said, “When @CoachBrianKelly took over at LSU they were 18 months removed from winning a national championship with Joe Burrow. Brian Kelly couldn’t hold Ed Orgeron’s jock.” The fans hold a deep connection to the 2019 team, and Kelly disrespecting the standard set by Orgeron is seen as threatening by fans.
And here’s the heart of it. Kelly is seen as an outsider trying to rewrite a story that LSU fans hold dear. One fan summed it up perfectly, “People can criticize Coach O all they want, but the fact is that Coach O understood LSU and understood the culture. He gets it. This guy doesn’t. Too busy pretending to be a savior when the program didn’t need saving, it needed continuity.” That’s a harsh spotlight to be under. With fans skeptical and expectations sky-high, Kelly is fighting to win over a fanbase that wants their roots honored as much as their team to win. But off the field, it seems like he is not doing as well as he is supposed to do.
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